A New Rudd Center Study Shows Weight-Based Bullying Viewed as Most Common Form of Bullying in Children

Rudd Center Study Finds Support for Classification of Obesity as a Disease

In the first assessment of public opinion since obesity was formally classified as a disease by the American Medical Association in 2013, a new study from the UCONN Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity has found that a majority of Americans support the designation.

New Rudd Center Study Documents Decrease in Plate Waste Following Changes to School Meal Standards

A study by the UCONN Rudd Center found that students ate more fruit and threw away less of their entrees and vegetables after new national healthier school lunch standards took effect than before the changes. Click on "read more" to hear a radio interview about the study findings.

Rudd Center Introduces WellSAT 2.0

The Rudd Center recently updated the WellSAT, a quantitative assessment tool of school wellness policies. WellSAT offers a consistent and reliable means of assessing the comprehensiveness and strength of school wellness policies within or among states.

A UCONN Rudd Center review of the evidence shows that highly-caffeinated, often sugar-laden energy drinks can harm children and adolescents, and supports physicians' groups and policy makers calling for restrictions on marketing and sales of these drinks to children under 18.

New Rudd Center Report - Trends in Television Food Advertising to Young People: 2014 Update

The 2014 update shows that, compared to 2007, advertising to youth increased in categories including candy, carbonated beverages and fast food. Ads for bottled water and fruits and vegetables also increased, but these categories each represented less than two percent of food ads seen by youth.

Recent News

Twenty five years after the Americans with Disabilities Act was signed into law, it is becoming easier for individuals with obesity who are seeking protection against weight discrimination to establish disability claims. Rudd Center Deputy Director Rebecca Puhl's opinion piece in The New York Times Read More

When asked why children are bullied, the predominant view of thousands of adults from four different countries was that the most common reason was not race, religion, physical disability or sexual orientation, but weight. This new multi-national study led by the UCONN Rudd Center is featured in The New York Times. Read More

"The largest economy on earth, the land of opportunity and yet too many children are going hungry in America." This CNN report focuses on Bridgeport, CT, where 40 percent of children rely on food stamps. Rudd Center Director Marlene Schwartz is one of the experts interviewed. Read More

Obesity is an epidemic in the United States and some think government is the way to stop it. U.S. News & World Report writer Kimberly Leonard interviewed Rudd Center Director Marlene Schwartz and other leading experts to explore this timely topic. Read More

As obesity rates surge, researchers and policy experts with the UCONN Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity work to stem the rising tide. The center is featured in the Spring 2015 edition of UCONN Magazine. Read More

The Rudd Center For Food Policy & Obesity

The Rudd Center is a non-profit research and public policy organization devoted to improving the world’s diet, preventing obesity, and reducing weight stigma.